Rapunzel, Where's Your Tower?
by KaylaDestroyer
Summary: Sequel to 'Diego's Cinderella Story! Dedications inside. Aritoka is the feidty, beautiful daughter of Diego and Galaxy. But that's not why Diego suddenly tries to keep her locked away from the world. And then, during her adventures, she meets up with the weird guy called Sorvin. Rated cause I don't know everything that's gonna's ensue quite yet. I'll be working on the image!
1. Prologue

Rapunzel, Where's Your Tower?

**Just some quick stuff here, in case you've all forgotten from the previous story:**

'**Alduro' is pronounced '`Al – der – oh'**

'**Darotu' is pronounced 'Duh – row- two' **

'**Aritoka' is pronounced 'Air – ih - tow – kuh'.**

**So, come one and all and enjoy the show! An Ice Age fairytale for the ages! (Please leave positive reviews!)**

Prologue

Diego smiled softly down at the tiny bundle in his paws. The newborn saber cub murmured and gurgled, staring up at him with wide, violet irises. She stared at him curiously, and reached out a paw to him. Diego chuckled and proffered his own large paw to the tiny one reaching up to him. The cub grasped one of his toes and giggled, causing Diego's smile to widen. She had his soft orange and white fur tones, as well as his eye shape. She had her mother's nose, but he could tell she sported his lips.

Her mother's ears were pinned flat to her small head, not yet in use. He gently pressed his nose against her tiny forehead, then planted a small kiss on it. He cradled the tiny body securely against his chest, feeling so very proud. "Well, are you going to hog the child I birthed, or do I get to see her too?" Diego rolled his eyes. He knew Galaxy wasn't anywhere near annoyed, but could tell she was eager to wrap her newborn daughter in her safe, tender embrace, less ill fortune befall her in the outside world. Of course, Diego didn't think _he_ was much of an outside world; he was her father after all, and deep within the confines of Galaxy's chosen birth cave.

Seriously, he was like, one foot from his mate. But he understood her nervousness and gently laid the tiny cub next to her mother's chest. Galaxy smiled and wrapped a paw around her tiny daughter, smiling and purring as she nuzzled her one cub. They both were happy beyond compare, and now, nine days after the birth, Diego proudly smiled upon his daughter's open eyes. Aritoka, they had named her. They wanted to start a new name, and had taken careful precision in forming their daughter's name. After she had lived her life, her name would take on the meaning of her personality and actions.

"She'll be strong." Galaxy whispered as her nose gently caressed the small face of her giggling daughter. Diego lay on his belly beside her.

"Yes, she will." he agreed softly. He brought one claw underneath her chin, carefully turning her face to his. "Beautiful little Aritoka." The little girl gave a squeal and grasped her father's paw between both of her own, shaking it back and forth, giggling avidly. Diego and Galaxy chuckled, nuzzling each other as they watched her play. Today was special for more than one reason. Gently resting his head on top of Galaxy's and painfully removing his eyes from his daughter, Diego whispered, "Should I get them now or later?"

"You can bring them in now." Galaxy replied, pressing her nose into his neck. Diego sighed through his nose contentedly at her touch.

"Alright then." He rose to his feet, and strode out of the cave into the late morning sunlight. Sid spotted him in an instant and quickly waddled over, coming to a stop in front of him and jumping up and down excitedly.

"Is it time yet buddy? Huh? Huh? Is it time yet?" Diego rolled his eyes.

"Yes Sid, you can all meet her now. Help me gather everyone." The sloth eagerly followed his saber companion, until they had gathered the remaining animals in the family. Diego led them all to the cave where Galaxy and Aritoka resided; it was traditionally a private affair where a cub was born until it was old enough to be introduced to the pack. After a warning that being too loud would result in instantaneous death, the new father led his friends deep into the cave where his daughter was born. They reached Galaxy as Aritoka was nursing. Diego smiled and made his way over to Galaxy and laid down, nuzzling her.

After a moment, he looked towards his daughter. Aritoka lay on her side, as did her mother, pressed against Galaxy's belly, sucking loudly. He smiled and licked her tiny body as she drank, until she had satisfied herself. Once she finished, Diego gently rolled her onto her back with his nose, and then scooped her up into his embrace, holding her against his chest. Ellie cooed over her initially, and Peaches, being a year old now, was quite fascinated by the tiny ball of fur. Crash and Eddie clambered up onto his shoulders to get a look at the newborn, emitting their own cooing and gushing. Manny was the last to look at the child, while Ellie chatted with the still recuperating Galaxy and the rest of the herd played around.

"What did you name her?" the bull asked.

"Aritoka." Diego replied softly. As if already familiar with her own name, Aritoka snapped her eyes up to he father. Diego smiled and gently licked her face, earning a bout of happy giggling. Manny placed a trunk on his friend's shoulder.

"I'm happy for you." he said, then frowned slightly. "And I'm so very sorry." Diego frowned softly, then sighed, looking at Aritoka. She smiled up at him with childish innocence, and Diego couldn't help but hug her close against his chest.

"It's alright, Manfred." Diego was a little surprised at himself; he rarely used his brother's full name. He must have really been put out. "We've agreed to never speak of it. At least, not in front of her." Manny nodded, and both of their faces brightened once more. Aritoka gave a happy gurgle, and Diego handed her back to a now sitting up Galaxy. AS much as she was leaning on Ellie, the new mother happily accepted her child into her embrace, smiling and nuzzling tiny little Aritoka.

"Congratulations, you two." Ellie said. "Welcome to the hood." she added with a wink to Galaxy, who stared at her dumbfounded.

"The...'hood'?"

"Motherhood." A round of laughs came from the gathered adults, but was instantly shushed by a surprised cry from Aritoka at the sudden increase in volume.

* * *

**A/N: So what do you guys think so far? I'm doing better at this series thingy now, since I'm actually updating faster. One thing I would like to point out to my readers; I DO look at the stats of my stories, and I get a ton of hits from a ton of countries, mostly the USA and the UK. But, especially on the first story in this series, 'Diego's Cinderella Story', I got only four reviews, and it's one of my most read stories! If you think I'm being demanding (and I'm not) please think of this instead as me begging for more reviews (that are thorough) so I know if people really do like my stories. I know of a couple people in particular who really do like this stuff, but I want to see the hundreds of other readers tell me their thoughts too. So, in a desperate bid, I think I'm not going to update this story until I either get a lot of reviews on this first chapter, OR unless enough begging and pleading is put into the few reviews I may get. **

**( Muahaha! Sorry to those who really do love my stuff, I guess you'll just have to beg really hard. ;D) I think this is a story readers will really like, but I won't know for sure unless you guys tell me. So please, review! Thoroughly! And now, for the dedications:**

**Female Jester 1212 - I think you've reviewed on every single one of my stories! XD THANKS YOU VERY MUCH for reviewing my previosu story!**

**kitkat342 - You and I review each other, and we both love each other's stuff! THANKS YOU VERY MUCH for loving the story before this one!**

**AquilaTempestas - You were so eager for more, and the first left you speechless! Well, here's the sequel, only time will tell when I'll update it. THANKS YOU VERY MUCH for your enthusiasm!**

**And a special shoutout to Villain's Bad Girl - 'Diego's Cinderella Story' is the first of my stories I've seen you review, but it means a lot to me whenever someone new reviews, so THANKS YOU VERY MUCH!**

**(P.S. I don't know how many of you are familiar with the Baby Blues comics, but Ellie's little joke I got from one where Wanda was pregnant with Wren, I think, and she came across another lady who had just had a baby and had just broke down and wailed all her horrors to Wanda of how hard her life was. Sure, it sounds sad, but the humorous part was that Wanda used the same play on words as Ellie. Galaxy just isn't a mess...yet.)**


	2. Chapter 1: Second Strike

**Wass up readers? I've decided to post the next chappie! Now I got 7 reviews on the prologue, so I should get that same amount on this chapter, no? That would boost the count to 14. So, thank you to all who have reviewed!**

**FemaleJester1212: I hope this one is beuatiful as well!**

**Kitkat342: Well, here's more for you to read! Hope you continue to love it!**

**AquilaTempestas: No reason to be sorry, I'm glad if you think the prologue was really cute! I'm glad I managed to make you give a rare squeal of happiness! Again, thank you! I'm glad I'm realistic enough for ya'! Well...nah I'll just leave that part uncomment-on. You'll all see why as the story progresses! ;D Yeah, I'd die of happiness too if the had soemthing like this in the movie! Glad you like confusion, cause this story had quite a big secret! (Man...that was a lot of exclamation marks! XD)**

**randomerUK: Glad you loved it! Here's more for you to read!**

**Villains' Bad Girl: Glad you're so eager to read more! From the rest of my reviews, so far it _is_ a pretty cute fic!**

**mwang: I see you liked the hood joke! Hope you enjoy this chappie too!**

**Mad-Face Pro c.c: Romeo and Juliet isn't one that interests me very much. At least not right now...I don't know about the far off future, but I doubt it. Hope you enjoy this chapter!**

**Whew! Lot's to reply on! Hopefully after this chappie, they'll be even more! By the way, don't know if anyone noticed, but I made a change to the plot. I just thought it would incorporaate what I really wanted to happen better, and it makes the story a lot easier to write! Man, I better stop before this chapter hits 10 pages in length! Before the A/N it was about 8 & 1/4! By The way, you'll understand the title to this chapter later on in the story.**

**Read, Review, and Enjoy!**

* * *

Rapunzel, Where's Your Tower?

Chapter 1: Second Strike

Aritoka awoke with a groan, and took an irritated swipe at the large body that was constantly nudging her. She heard a low pitched chuckle, and opened her eyes halfway to stare up at her father. He bent down to gently nuzzle her face. "Good morning Aritoka." he said with a soft, rumbling purr. Aritoka yawned and rolled onto her side, closing her eyes once more as she attempted to snuggle into the dirt ground.

"Morning Daddy." the ten month old replied sleepily. She felt the adult saber nose her body slightly harsher, continuing to awaken her. "Dad!" she whined. "I don't wanna get up!"

"You have to."

"_Why_?"

"Your mother just got back from hunting breakfast. She brought caribou." Aritoka's eyes shot open and she leapt to her feet, her vision blurred from sleep. She vigorously rubbed her paws into her eyes.

"Ah...stupid sleepy gunk!" With that she raced out of the den, eager to tear into her favorite meal. "_Not a bad way to start the day._" she thought.

* * *

Diego smiled as he watched his daughter sprint off to find her breakfast. He knew the mere word 'caribou' would perk her up anytime, anywhere. He sighed with longing for a moment, before heading out to join his family. Galaxy was slowly picking her share clean, savoring the flavor. He chuckled upon remembering her complete willingness to hunt as soon as the time came to wein Aritoka. "_I guess Aritoka's milk teeth did a real number on her._" he thought, before turning away to go hunt down his own breakfast. Galaxy and Aritoka could split one caribou just fine, but he, an adult male, was a different case.

He lightly trotted out of the section of his territory that the whole herd resided in; to his hunting grounds. He sighted a caribou that presented itself as a worthy meal, and crouched low into the grass. He stalked forward silently, eyes locked onto his prey. He crept up to the edge of the concealing grasses, and waited as the caribou wandered closer. He bent down even lower to the ground, green eyes flashing, long sabers glinting in the sunlight ever so slightly, muscles taught and ready to spring. He flashed a toothy, wicked looking grin, before springing from his hiding place with a roar.

* * *

Aritoka ripped into her share of the caribou, stainging her muzzle a dark crimson and stuffing her mouth with the delicious meat. Once the majority of the flesh was gone, she pulled the bones apart and chewed off whatever she could, even breaking a few of the larger ones open and feasting on the marrow. When at last she had devoured every scrap of the caribou that she could get a hold of, she turned herself over and lay sprawled on her back in the lush grass. After emitting a loud belch, she rolled her eyes at her mother's scolding. "Aritoka!" she scolded sharply. "How many times do I have to tell you to mind your manners?"

"The same number of how many burping contests I've had with dad?" she replied with a smirk, settling down into the grass so she could resume sleeping.

"Aritoka!"

"_What_?" the girl whined.

"You can't just lay sprawled on your back for everyone to see! It's not lady like."

"Mom, I'm not even a teenager yet, much less an adult lady!" Aritoka heard a sigh.

"I _know_ dear, but your age right _now_ is training to _be_ a lady." Aritoka scoffed.

"Well...that's just a ripoff!" A laugh met her statement. The ten month old turned onto her side and snuggled deeper into the soft grass, trying to ignore the annoyance of her mother's scoldings. "Can I go back to sleep now?"

"No sweetheart, it's time for you to wake up for the day." Galaxy replied. Aritoka's ear flickered as it received the sounds of her mother's paws softly padding across the grass to her. She felt a large paw roughly nudge her, and shied away from it. But the nudging only persisted. "Aritoka, get up _now_, or I will pick up up by your throat and carry _or _drag you, whichever works, to the nearest waterhole and dump you in it." Aritoka scoffed.

"You would _not_." But she was shocked to feel her mother's jaws wrap firmly but gently around her neck and lift the uppr half of her body into the air, for she was now a fifth of her father's size, and began dragging her off. She huffed and hung limp, still not convinced that Galaxy would drop her in a water hole. It was when her mother's destination came into sight that she began to feel nervous. "Mom, you're not, seriously gonna' drop me in the water are you?" Aritoka asked nervously. Galaxy didn't answer. "Mom?" she asked frantically as they reached the water's edge.

Galaxy waded into the water hole, causing her daughter to begin thrashing around violently. "Okay mom, I get it! I'm awake now!"

"You had your chance!" Galaxy replied through a mouthful of Aritoka's fur, before dropping her altogether. Aritoka thrashed in such a way that her head never went completely under, but jumped out as soon as she gained her footing, shivering and dripping wet.

"Mom!" she wailed, then sat down miserably. "Look at me! I'm cold, and wet, and upset." She sniffled. "I hate being cold and wet and upset!" She suddenly felt a large, warm body wrap around her, a paw pressing her head to a large, bright orange chest. She snuggled into the warmth, on the verge of tears.

"I _hate_ water!" she choked. A soothing voice shushed her gently. A rough tongue licked her forehead, mildly warming and drying her.

"I'm sorry baby. I shouldn't have done that to you." Aritoka sniffled and pressed herself further into her mother's fur as tears began to streak down her face. "I'm so, so sorry. My little girl. You're so much like your father."

"It's okay mom." Aritoka replied, holding back a sob. She relished the feeling of her mother nuzzling her head.

"Let's go back home; I'll dry you off." Galaxy said, before giving her daughter a fond lick. Aritoka nodded, then dried her tears. Galaxy gently nudged her along until they got to the home cave. Diego was no where to be seen.

"_Probably getting _his_ breakfast._" Aritoka thought. Her mother led her inside the dark confines of the cave that the entirety of the herd slept in. Their ability to see in the low light ensured that Aritoka and her mother found their respective sleeping places without hassle, and they both lay down comfortably on the ground. Galaxy situated her young daughter in her front paws, and began licking her dry. Aritoka smiled and snuggled into her mother, relishing the warmth from her mother's tongue. But suddenly, Galaxy froze, and her body stiffened. She wrapped Aritoka's body completely in her forelegs, and sat up, pressing her daughter protectively to her chest.

"Mom? What's-" Aritoka asked, but her mother cut her off sharply with a 'sh!'. Aritoka almost recoiled; neither of her parents had _ever_ spoken to her so sharply. She wrapped her forelegs around her mother, shivering. She could feel Galaxy gently stroking the back of her neck with her toes, and so pressed her face a little more into the bright orange fur on her mother's chest. She swiveled her ears this way and that, trying to see if she could detect the same sounds that had set Galaxy off. "Mom?" she whispered.

"Dearest Galaxy." The voice was rumbling and smooth, almost sweet, even, and male. But at the same time it was coated with malice, causing Aritoka to shiver. She could imagine deadly, green poison dripping off the words as they hung thickly in the air. This was _not_ the voice of her father that she so loved, nor the strange voice of her mammoth uncle, and yet still not the humorous, lispy, high pitched voice of her sloth uncle. No, this was a voice she had never heard before; it unsettled her, and stirred fear up in her heart so that her stomach was sick. She felt her mother squeeze her and press her even tighter against her chest, her claws extending ever so slightly.

Too afraid to glimpse the being, she turned her eyes away and buried her face further into Galaxy's chest, her shivering intensifying as her eyes caught the movement of a creature stepping into the sunlight streaming in at the front of the cave. She heard her mother gasp. " No...Alduro."

"_Alduro?_" Aritoka thought, the name unfamiliar to her.

"It is I." the male voice replied, before letting out a deep, resonating, evil chuckle. Aritoka suddenly felt as though, whoever this _Alduro_ guy was, his eyes were boring into the back of her head. She hunkered down and gave a whimper. A loud, cruel laugh suddenly rang in her ears. "_This_ is the offspring of the saber who 'killed' me on the brink of his own death? _Pathetic_!" Aritoka's eyes snapped open and she jerked free of her mother's grasp, spinning around and running up so that she stood a yard from the intruding male, emitting a defiant roar.

She stood tall and proud, reveling in the glory of her first roar. "Aritoka, _no_!" her mother warned, leaping to her feet a well.

"_Nobody_ disrespects _me_." Aritoka spat. "_Or_ my daddy." Alduro's figure was framed by the sunlight, but his front was still back and detailess, except for his dark green eyes. He let out a low chuckle, and then raised one of his forepaws. Aritoka felt a weight on the left side of her forehead, and froze, terror once again rising within her.

"Well, you've certainly got your _daddy's_ temper." he said, then his eyes narrowed, and Aritoka could feel his claws extending, stabbing painfully against her skull. She cringed, and locked her eyes onto his.

"Alduro _stop it_! She's got no part in this!"

"Oh yes she does." Alduro's voice was chillingly quiet and whispery. "She's _Diego's_ daughter."

"She is _my_ dayghter as well!" Galaxy snapped. Aritoka swallowed thickly as Alduro's face came nearer to her own. She felt paralyzed, unable to try wrenching herself free. Alduro continued, addressing her as though her mother hadn't said her second comment.

"_Your_ problem is, you can't control your body's reaction to that temper like _he_ can."

"Don't!" But Galaxy's cry did nothing. Aritoka felt the large claws sink even deeper into her flesh, and then they swiftly but oh so _painfully_ raked themselves down her forehead, across her left eyelid, mercilessy bore into and down her cheek, and then viciously released themselves at the very bottom of the left side of her chin.

* * *

Diego was just finishing his breakfast, and quite hurriedly too. He sensed that something was not right at home; where he was the father of his daughter, the mate of Galaxy, and alpha over his small, two female pack that had integrated itself into the herd piece by piece. He tried to ensure that he got as much meat as possible off the bones, but he felt terribly uneasy. His fears were confirmed when he heard a scream being made by the voice of his daughter, his little girl. His eyes widened and he jumped to his feet, speeding back in the direction of home as the cries of his mate Galaxy pounded in his ears. "NO! DIEGO!"

Despite the size of his territory, Diego had built up his stamina and speed by a great amount, and was able to reach his home in five minutes. He came upon Manny and Galaxy fending off Alduro, and his heart nearly stopped. "_Not this again!_" he thought. Snarling, he charged in, roaring ferociously in Alduro's face and causing the offending male to take a couple of steps back. The rest of the herd was inside the cave, shielded by Ellie. Ignoring the intense crying and shushing bombarding his ears as the three others outside the cave stilled, Diego gave another snarl for good measure and took a step forward. "I warned you, _Alduro._" he spat.

"If you ever showed your face here again, I'd take the pleasure of ripping it clean off before I _killed_ you!"

"Go ahead and _try_, by all means!" Alduro snarled. Diego leapt forward, wrapping his paws around the other male's throat, his momentum toppling his opponent onto their back and allowing the pair to roll a few feet. He came out on top, and began intensly choking Alduro, venting his fury. "_How dare he attack my daughter? Especially after -_" Diego's thoughts were cut short as Alduro managed to grab Diego's paws and successfully wrench them off his throat, then he rolled to the side and place himself on top. Now _he_ choked _Diego_.

But Diego didn't give up easily. _Especially_ when he was this furious. He slashed the offender's forearm, staining his fur crimson and causing him to emit a painful roar. Then he used both of his hind paws to kick Alduro's stomach, stabbing him with his claws at the same time. Alduro fell back with a yowl and a grunt. Diego instantly regained his hold on Alduro's throat, and the two went to rolling, Diego choking the invading male, while Alduro continuously hacked away at his stamina. Clawing, biting, plain hitting; whatever it took for him to release Diego's hold on his throat.

But Diego was determined to win this struggle, for it had become more than a grudge; it was a struggle for dominance. Diego wouldn't surrender himself, slink off to somewhere and allow Alduro to reign. And he had a feeling that the rest of the herd wouldn't either. If he died, Alduro would take over his territory, either eat the herd or force them out, and try to obtain Galaxy. And most likely kill off his daughter. His only child. Diego feared that his friends and family wouldn't be able to defend themselves from Alduro's malicious intent, and so resolved _not_ to die.

Suddenly, Diego became acutely aware of Aritoka's pained sobbing. "_He hurt her!_" The though sent roils of anger-fueled energy to Diego's body, and he attacked Alduro with a strength he had never before possessed. He bit down on the other male's jugular, intent on making sure he _never moved again_. Alduro clawed at him and struggled, but despite being the heavier of the two, his stamina was not as great as Diego's, and so his own strength failed to shake the smaller saber off. Finally, Alduro's body lay motionless beneath Diego. He waited a good ten seconds before letting go.

Diego lifted his head, standing victorious over the bloody, mangled body of his deceased opponent. Manny nodded respectively to him, and Galaxy gave him a proud smile, chin high. Diego loved seeing the pride she had for him dancing in her eyes. But his focus was pulled towards the home cave by Aritoka's cries. Quickly stepping off the dead body, Diego just about ran to the cave, and attempted to push past Ellie. Galaxy came up beside him and pointedly looked at his muzzle. Finally noticing the thick, sticky, crimson liquid that was dripping off himself, Diego nodded and cast one more concerned, fond glance at what he could see of his daughter, and sped off to the nearest water hole.

Once reaching his destination, he lay on his belly at the edge of the water and dipped his face into it. He stuck one forepaw in the cool water and rubbed at his maw, washing off all the blood. Once he had cleaned his entire self of the blood from his own injuries, and there were absolutely no red flecks in his orange fur, he stood, shook himself as dry as possible, and ran back to the home cave. He arrived and instantly shoved his way through the crowd to the back of the cave, where Galaxy leant against the back wall, gently holding a shivering, sniffling Aritoka in her embrace. Diego quickly made his way over to the pair, and after shooting Galaxy a plead through his eyes, was allowed to pull his daughter into his own embrace. She snuggled into his chest, her nose, ears, lips, and tail quivering. Diego pressed her head to his chest, his other foreleg wrapped around her.

And he just sat like that for a while, the entire herd watching the pair worriedly. Diego was finally able to coax Aritoka into raising her head to look up at him, but the sight caused his breath to hitch in his throat. A horrible gash lay across the center of the left side of her face, from her forhead to her chin. Her left eye wasn't open, but it wasn't the damaged part, thankfully. His grip tightened on her, and he stroked her head gently. "Oh, Aritoka." he whispered. "My _beautiful_ little girl."

It was true; while the gash was quite unsightly, Aritoka was naturally a stunning beauty. Diego was sure she would be an irrisistable teenager and woman. One of those he feared, since part of that time he still had the responsibility to take care of her. Now he feared she would have difficulty finding a mate; for it seemed as though the gash would scar her for life. She hung her head. "I'm sorry daddy." she whimpered. Diego gently held her close once more, and planted a gentle kiss on the top of her head.

"Diego-" Who the voice belonged to didn't matter. Diego's head spun around, a silent, agitated snarl on his face.

"Hush!" he growled, proving to be in a very bad mood. The rest of the herd glanced at each other. He turned his attention back to Aritoka, his expression softening. "It's not your fault Aritoka. _He_ had no right to be anywhere near you." he said, gently stroking her back. "Now, let me see that injury of yours." The ten month old lifted her face to her father once more.

Diego gently licked away any lingering tears she had, and then began licking the gash, hoping it would scab over quickly and heal. The gash proved to be three separate, jagged claw marks rather than a much larger injury. Somehow, he felt relieved by this revelation. "_A father's love._" he thought to himself, reeling from the emotion his heart was producing in such great abundance as he continued ro care for his only child. Aritoka's sniffling slowly dwindled, until Diego was sure she was no longer in pain.

"She roared." came the quiet voice of Sid. Aritoka's eyes met Diego as the father smiled proudly.

"Is that so?" Aritoka smiled and nodded her head slightly. "Well, I'm sorry I wasn't here to see how awesome it probably was." Diego said, giving his daughter a gentle noogie. Aritoka smiled even wider, and giggled. The tension in the cave released, and everyone besides the father and daughter gave a collective sigh of relief. "Aritoka? Why don't you stay inside for today? Just to heal."

"Okay daddy."

* * *

**Okay, I just really wanted to end with an A/N. Please review thoroughly and tell me what you all think! Was this chappie good? Bad? Did you like it? Could it have been better? I wanna' know what you think! By the way, I personally LOVE that it was her first roar! I wish Diego could have seen it! That was kinda' mena of me to hurt poor little Aritoka, huh? I just sort of wanted her to have a distinguishign characteristic to show her boldness and fierceness. The rest of her face is beautiful though! Just cause I'm not _that_ mean.**


	3. Chapter 2: Gone

**What's up readers? FINALLY! An update where the adventure begins! I'd like to thank: Villans' Bad Girl; kitkat342; FemaleJester1212; & mwang for reviewing chapter 1! Things are about to take an interesting turn, and neither Aritoka nor her companion know what is to come! So read on, eager beavers! For the quench to your thirst awaits!**

* * *

Rapunzel, Where's Your Tower?

Chapter 2: Gone

Aritoka slept peacefully with a smile on her face, dreaming of running through an open field that she had never before seen, the grass swaying peacefully in the wind, the sky clear of clouds, and the warm sunshine gently heating her fur. It was bliss; it was _freedom_. The thing that she so longed for with a deep passion. Her laughter rang sweetly through the plains, bouncing her own enjoyment back to her. She skidded to a stop at a large waterhole that appeared in her path. Staring at her reflection, she gasped in joy and lifted a paw to touch the unscarred left side of her face. She was ten months old again, and beautiful, her scars gone.

As if they had never been inflicted. She threw her head back and laughed, eyes sparkling with mirth, her saber-teeth only stubs once more. She was so happy, so free, and nobody was there to put a stop to her fun. A gentle voice suddenly whispered in her ear, "Aritoka, sweetheart, time to get up." She gave a slight groan, looking around at the plains of her freedom. The blue sky had turned to a sunset, and she felt the bliss slowly slipping away from her.

She closed her eyes and waited, unwilling to watch her dream world fade to blackness. After a while, her body felt sluggish, and she slowly opened her eyes to see her mother smiling softly at her. She offered a small smile back for a moment, before sighing sadly and dropping her gaze to the ground. Galaxy gently stroked her neck, trying to sooth her. "You were having that dream again?" she asked. Aritoka nodded mutely. "I'm sorry sweetheart, I know you feel really cooped up."

Aritoka sighed. "Then why can't you convince dad to let me go out of the cave once in a while?" she asked. Galaxy sighed.

"Because I...I kind of agree with him."

"But it's not fair!"

"Aritoka, we've been over this!" Aritoka turned away from her mother angrily, tears brimming in her eyes. "Sweetheart, please...try to understand. Your father and I only want what is best for you. We want to protect you from -"

"From what?" Aritoka spat, whipping her head around to glare at her mother. "The guy that had a crush on you is dead for sure this time, I'm twenty months old now, and I've never met a single other saber boy in my life!" Galaxy sighed.

"Aritoka, Alduro isn't the only guy in the world like that! There are plenty of men that are completely willing to do _unspeakable_ things to you that if they _did _happen...I would feel ashamed as a mother. And so would your father."

"Oh, it's _always_ about _you_! And dad!"

"Aritoka, _listen_ to me for _once_-"

"No! I don't want to!" Galaxy gave a low growl of frustration. Then she sighed.

"You were always headstrong. Inependent." she said. "That's why your father worries so much." Galaxy pulled her daughter into a sitting position and hugged her to her chest. "Please Aritoka...just remember how much we love you." Aritoka sighed and hugged her mother back.

"I love you and dad too." she said. "I just wish he wasn't so overprotective."

"I know dear."

"Ever since...this," Aritoka reached a paw up to softly touch the three jagged scars that started on her forehead and ended at her chin. "he's become such a...Manny-Monster." Galaxy busted out laughing, and held her daughter at arms length.

"Aritoka," she stopped to laugh. "do _not_ disrespect your elders!" she giggled. The two girls fell into a laughing fit, until Diego walked in upon hearing the commotion.

"What's so funny?" he asked with a smirk. Both females looked at each other, before emitting another bout of giggles.

"Nothing dear." Galaxy replied, walking over to nuzzle her mate. Aritoka rolled her eyes.

"Seriously? Do you guys have to get all mushy?" she whined. Her parents chuckled.

"Someday you'll understand." Diego replied. Aritoka scoffed.

"Not with the way _you're_ raising me."

"_Aritoka_." Diego warned. "When you're twenty four months old, I promise I'll let you go out."

"Why can't I just step outside right _now_? Play with Peaches?"

"Aritoka, I _told_ you the decided date, _period._" Aritoka huffed and turned away from her parents, laying on her belly. "Aritoka, look at me!"

"No, I don't _want_ to. I've been doing it for the past twenty months."

"Aritoka, I am your father and you will obey me!" Diego snapped.

"No!" Aritoka yelled, still refusing to turn around

"Diego, just leave her. She needs to calm down." Galaxy said quietly, nuzzling her mate in hopes of calming him down. The male sighed deeply after a few moments.

"Alright." he agreed. The pair left Aritoka alone.

"_Arent't I old enough to start making _some _desicions for myself?_" Aritoka thought. "_It's not fair; they've imprisoned me here for ten months of my life. Ten months I'll never get back._" She glanced outside. "_I should try to savor my last few months of childhood, the way _I _want to._" She stood and glanced around, then padded up to the edge of the cave and glanced around again. "_I better start while there's still daylight._" she thought, then, once assured no one was around to see her escape, she shot off to the nearest treeline.

Those quick few seconds were bliss, running through the grass, the warm sun shining down on her. She smiled, relishing her freedom. Then she entered the shade of the trees, and paused, looking back. For a moment, she felt guilty, and almost turned to go back. Her parents would be devestated, the herd, whom she considered family, would be worried to death and would organize into a search party. She almost turned and ran back. _Almost._

She scrunched her nose slightly, squeezing her eyes shut. And then she realized it was the same thing her father did when he was conflicted so greatly. Reluctantly letting a lone tear slide down her cheek, she turned and sprinted as hard as she could away from her only home; the only place she had ever known.

* * *

Aritoka ran and ran, unable to stop. Because she knew if she did, she would allow herself to think too much, and then she would go home. She _couldn't_ go back home; not when she had come so far. She suddenly _did_ stop; it was imperative, for she had reached a large glacier that acted as a wall for the valley she lived in. She exhaled in awe, eyes scanning the wide visage of the glacier, looking for an opening she could use as an exit. She spotted a small opening at the top of a large hill. "_Perfect_!" she thought.

She froze, her hackles raising involuntarily at the sound of a twig snapping. Her head whipped around, eyes searching the trees. A rustle in the leaves was heard, and she bolted for the opening. Her breathing was ragged and heavy, as she had been running for hours already, and she could hear the footsteps of her pursuer. She clambered up the hill, the fear of her father overtaking her urging her already sore legs to keep moving. Finally, she reached the top of the hill, and paused a moment to catch her breath, staring at the opening. It was about half the height of her uncle Manny, but twice the width of her aunt Ellie.

After taking a deep breath, Aritoka raced on through the opening. She ran through a long ice tunnel, observing the glittering walls and trying to keep her footing. "_Huh...dad's been all over the valley. He never mentioned this._" she thought. Suddenly she realized that there was more than one set of claws clicking against the ice floor. She chanced a glance back and saw a streak of bright orange. She sped up fearfully, desperate to get away.

Her father would _not_ succeed in taking her home! A small aperture appeared, and Aritoka made a bee-line for it. She was nearing the exit, which turned out to be larger than the other hole, when her pursuer finally caught up. Aritoka was pounced on from behind and rolled onto her back, where she was pinned to the icey floor. She stared up into the bright green...curious, eyes of her father? She took in the rest of her captor's face, definitely her father's eyes; same shape, same color, same attitude. His nose and ears too.

But their mouth looked like her mother's, and their fur was the same shade too. She blinked in surprise as the other saber tilted their head, eyes roving over her. "Who _are_ you?" she finally got out. "_Must be some uncle of mine._" she thought. The stranger was only a little larger than her, though. They raised an eyebrow, eyeing her curiously.

"Sorvin." was the soft reply. The voice was young and male.

"How old are you?"

"Twenty months." Aritoka's eyes widened.

"Me too!" Sorvin stared at her for a while, before stepping off of her and offering his paw. "I'm good, thanks." she said, righting herself into a sitting position.

"Who are _you?_" he asked. She smiled.

"Aritoka." she replied, sticking her paw out. After staring at it for a moment, Sorvin grasped the paw, and Aritoka shook for them.

"Why were you running? Why do you want to leave the valley?"

"I thought you were uh, somone else." She stared into Sorvin's eyes again. Why did they look so much like her father's?

"And you're leaving because?" Aritoka turned to the exit; it was so large, all she could see past it was a bright light.

"Because...I just need to. I need to go somewhere, do something." Sorvin raised an eyebrow inquisitively; it was starting to freak Aritoka out how much Sorvin looked like her father.

"Anything in particular?"

"No. I just need some freedom."

"Could I come with you?" Aritoka was surprised at the question. She blinked at him in shock.

"Come with me?" she asked. Sorvin nodded, a small smile forming on his lips.

"_Fur and fang...that's exactly what dad's eyes and mouth do when he smiles like that!_" she thought. " Um..." She couldn't help but feel comforted by Sorvin's presence; he looked so much like Diego, but he seemed quiet by nature. She smiled; she liked that combination. He didn't seem that dangerous, but she might as well try to check him out a little more. "Could you tell me why?" Sorvin's smile fell, and he glanced away.

"I was left all alone when I was ten months old. I learned how to hunt and stuff, but I haven't had contact with other saber's for almost a year." he replied sadly. Aritoka glanced away.

"Oh." she said. "Well...sure, you sound like you could use some company." she agreed. Sorvin gave a soft smile, his eyes lighting up brighter than the sun.

"Thank you." He sidled up to her, and the two walked out into the sunlight, side by side.

* * *

Diego approached the home cave, pausing at the entrance. He sighed and hung his head for a moment. It had been half an hour since his little spat with his daughter, and he figured she was calm enough to talk rationally. But more importantly, he wanted to apologize for snapping at her. "Aritoka?" he called quietly. He waited a few seconds, no responce. "Aritoka?"

His voice was a little louder, more urgent too. "Aritoka this is _not_ the time to be playing around!" Sighing and rolling his eyes, he entered the cave, muttering, "Women." He walked throughout the darkness of the entire cave, but still could not find her. A lump formed in his throat as the realization hit him worse than any punch to the gut. "_My daughter is gone._"

* * *

**Ooh, I'm so evil to you guys! Cutting it off there like that. Well, I hope I've wet your appetite for what is to come! It was actually shorter than the previous one. Please review thoroughly, or I won't be nice enough to update before I have my desired amount of reviews again! Hope you enjoyed this chapter! **


	4. Chapter 3: First Night Away from Home

**Hey readers! I am back, and so soon! I just couldn't wait to post, I'm having so much fun writing this! Sorry this chapter is a little short, but next chapter will be longer and I'll have a little more action to it! Hope you enjoy this and review! They're actually lacking, so please try your hardest to leave a review!Thank you's go to:**

**FemaleJester1212: Glad you found it cute! Although what exactly you are going 'Awwwwww!' at I'm not sure.**

**kitkat342: Glad you still love it! And that you're impressed by her guts! ;) Yes, a very 'Yay!' moment, but be forewarned: Sorvin is NOT what he seems! Well, you shall see their reaction here!**

**Villains' Bad Girl: Ah, he's much more than we seems! All will be found out later, young grasshopper! XD**

**mwang: Thanks for the dramatic drumroll! Glad you loved it!**

**Here's the next chapter guys!**

* * *

Rapunzel, Where's Your Tower?

Chapter 3: First Night Away from Home

Aritoka stepped into the bright light, squinting and relying on her paws for guidance through the opening. Once through, her eyes gazed upon the most beautiful sight; an endless, flat plain, of long grass that would come up to her shoulders. A blue sky stretched above them, with bright, early morning sunshine warming the two sabers as a gentle breeze made the grass sway back and forth. "Wow," came Sorvin's voice from beside her. He took a step forward. "So this is what outside the valley looks like."

"It's beautiful." Aritoka breathed, looking around. "It's everything I've ever dreamed! Come on!" Aritoka set off at a sprint, leading Sorvin down a huge grassy hill, into the plains of freedom. She laughed loudly, the grass brushing her fur as she streaked by. She turned to look at Sorvin - and realized he wasn't there. She looked back at the hill, and spotted him standing frozen.

She loped back up to him, tilting her head quizzically. "You coming?" she asked. Sorvin's eyes darted away from the plains.

"I...uh..." Aritoka nudged his shoulder with her head. He stared at her, a look of confusion in his eyes; he seemed totally at a loss. She grinned, holding back a giggle.

"_He looks like dad when I try to talk to him about girl stuff._" she thought. Walking around so that she stood at his left side, she nodded towards the horizon. "Come on. Let's go see the world." Sorvin looked away.

"But...what if something happens to us?"

"Nothing's gonna' happen. We're just gonna' go have an adventure, then come back and tell everyone about it." Aritoka assured, looking out at what she perceived as a bright future. Sorvin shifted uneasily.

"And if we _don't _come back?" Aritoka shrugged.

"My dad will kill _me_, I don't about you." Sorvin shuddered.

"Yeah...see _I_ don't feel like dying at this point in life. I'd rather wait until I'm old an decrepit and unfit for living in this world." Aritoka laughed.

"Then maybe you should stay away from _me_. I plan to get as close to death as I can." she stated proudly. She began circling the male in an intimidating fashion. "So...you can either come with _me _and live your life _before_ you get old and decrepit, or you can wait here behind this _prison wall_ of fear and marvel at the tale I tell when I return." she offered. Sorvin thought pensively for a while. He finally looked back up at the female who stood before him tall and proud.

"Well, I guess I could just tag along for the ride." he agreed. Aritoka giggled with girlish delight, before coming up beside him and nudging him onward.

"Come on then, let's go have some fun!" Sorvin smiled.

"Race ya' to the horizon!" he exclaimed, then sped off.

"Hey!" Aritoka called out with a grin, before chasing after him, laughing. "_This is gonna' be the funnest time I've ever had in my life!_" she thought excitedly.

* * *

Aritoka panted as she came to a stop under a large redwood tree, then promptly flopped onto her stomach. Sorvin reached her a few minutes later, panting harder than she had been. "You think we should have stopped for at least _one_ meal?" he asked tiredly. Aritoka shrugged to the best of her abilities.

"We didn't come across any herds. There may not have been any food within our reach, anyway." she replied. Sorvin sighed and lay down across from her.

"So...we just sleep here? Under the branches?" Aritoka rolled onto her back, wiggling herself deeper into the grass so that she was comfortable. The navy blue sky stretched beyond what her eyes could see, and the stars peeked and winked at the pair through the redwood's branches. The glowing moon was a sliver of silver whose beams shone crackly through the leaves.

"Yep." she replied. "It actually feels pretty good. You would not _believe_ how long it's been since I've slept outside in such, soft, _soft_ grass." She noticed Sorvin tilting his head at her curiously.

"Where do you normally sleep?"

"Oh, on the cold, stone-hard ground of a huge cave." She paused, staring at Sorvin's eyes. They couldn't possibly be her father's...but they were so comforting to stare upon. "But...I at least always had my mom and dad on either side of me." She chuckled. "I would always curl up against my father. He seemed warmer than my mom...I guess because he was bigger."

"I just...loved feeling his warmth." Realizing how personal she was getting towards this stranger, Aritoka clamped her mouth shut. She heard a small, uninterested 'hm.' She directed her eyes back at Sorvin, turning over onto her belly. "And you?" she asked after a moment. "What can you tell me about your parents?" Sorvin flushed and quickly looked away.

" I, never knew my mother." he said quietly. "My father was all I had."

"Oh." Sorvin sighed and laid his head on his paws so that he faced Aritoka, but his eyes stayed glued to the ground.

"I was always confused; he trained me for a job he didn't tell me about until before he left. I wish I knew what happened to him. I was so alone...for ten months of my life. Ten months I'm never going to get back." Aritoka jerked, slightly surprised that someone shared her regret. She made her way over to Sorvin, and laid down beside him. She placed her paw on his in a comforting gesture.

"I'm sorry. I can't imagine not knowing who your mother is. I'm really close with mine." Sorvin smiled at her. Aritoka suddenly felt tears pushing at her eyes, and glanced away. "I'm really close with my dad too." she said, the realization dropping in her stomach like a stone. Although she usually had verbal fights with her parents in the morning when she first awoke, by lunchtime all was well.

She went to sleep at night with a nuzzle exchanged between her and each parent, a lick or kiss, and the phrase, 'Night, sweet dreams, love you.' And she meant it. She lowered her ears in shame; no matter how much of a 'Manny-Monster' Diego had become, he was still her father, and she loved him dearly. She shook her head slightly and forced her tears back. It was too early in her adventure, her _freedom_, to be like this. She had to be strong. At least _that_ she knew Diego would be proud of.

"You miss him?" Aritoka looked back at Sorvin. She gave a small, soft smile.

"Yeah, a little bit. But, I don't think I've done anything yet that would make him _too_ proud." she replied. Sorvin chuckled.

"Same here. If I'm tagging along with you, I might as well make some sort of big achievement." Aritoka chuckled, then removed her paw from his. There were a few moments of companionable silence. "So...is this your first night away from home?" Sorvin asked. Aritoka nodded.

"It's actually kinda' weird." she replied. "I'm so used to having my family with me." Sorvin shrugged.

"I'm used to being lonely." Aritoka chuckled.

"I really am sorry about your, mom and dad." Sorvin smiled.

"Well, I've got you now, I guess". Aritoka smiled, walked a few paces away, then lay on her side and curled herself into a ball, slowly drifting off into dreamland.

"Night." she said with a yawn.

* * *

Sorvin watched Aritoka make herself comfortable before drifting off to sleep. He glanced around; their shelter was a strange, lone redwood tree. It was certainly flourishing out in the plains, all alone. He compared the tree to himself; he too had flourished all alone, learned to hunt and track, find and claim territory. But _he_ had a downside; it wasn't mentally healthy to live all alone if you were a saber. Sabers were pack animals. But trees didn't need company, they weren't conscious to whether they were alone or not.

They responded to other trees sapping up all the resources by dying, but they didn't _know_ it was because they weren't alone. He sighed and stared up at the stars, " Dad...if you can hear me...I promise, I'll do what you trained me for. I'll make you proud." Sorvin looked back at Aritoka. "Maybe not tonight, but I will. I promise." He then lay down on his belly and fell asleep himself.

* * *

Diego stared up at the stars in melancholy, his heart aching at the loss of his only daughter. The bright crescent moon shone down and illuminated the surrounding forest with a pale, ghostly glow. But it did not shake Diego. He sat just inside the cave, his muzzle barely poking out past the entrance, allowing a ghostly sheen to glint off of his long incisors. He inhaled deeply and closed his eyes, focusing on a mental image of his daughter. Her incisors were about an inch and a half shorter than his, and he had a feeling they would be his length once she was an adult. Her fur was his light, soft toned orange on top and white underneath, and she had the shape of his eyes, but her mother's color.

As a young cub, she had been the most adorable little girl he had ever seen. He opened his eyes and stared up at the pale moon once more. But she was no longer a little girl; it was June now, by October she would be twenty-four months, two years old. She would be an adult, able to go or stay as she pleased. Diego gave a heavy, shuddering sigh. He just wasn't ready for her to be this old; he still remembered her galloping through the fields like a wild horse when she was five months old. This time next year, she would probably have had her first heat, although he highly doubted they were close enough to any packs that Aritoka would come across a male that interested her.

He couldn't believe he had allowed his only child to slip through his grasp so easily. His ear flickered to the sound of quiet sniffling, and he turned away from the starry sky, entering the deeper realms of the cave where the remainder of his pack resided. Galaxy sat in a dark, lonely corner, away from the rest of the herd. No one else appeared to be awake, nor were they disturbed by her quiet sobs. He silently made his way over and wrapped Galaxy in his embrace. She stiffened in surprise for a moment, before turning and crying into his chest. "Oh Diego, what are we going to do?" she whimpered.

"It took us all day to comb the valley, and we didn't find a trace of her!" She broke down crying once more, and Diego comfortingly rubbed her back, tucking her head underneath his chin. "My little girl, gone!"

"Sh, calm down Galaxy. I _did_ find a weak scent trail just after sunset." His mate's head snapped up so that her hopeful eyes met his. "I just decided not to say anything because I didn't want to get your hopes up if it failed." Galaxy smiled and gently cupped her paws around his face.

"It's alright. I'm sure it will lead us to her." Diego smiled and pulled her into a gentle kiss, before laying on the floor next to her. She snuggled into his embrace lovingly, using her nose to nuzzle his neck. Diego sighed quietly, his daughter's disappearance slightly pushed back from the forefront of his mind. He wrapped a foreleg around Galaxy, holding her close to his chest. He gently licked her remaining tears away, then began cleaning her face. His mate had, to say the least, gotten down and dirty that day, looking everywhere for her daughter.

She opened her eyes halfway and smiled at him for a moment, before re-closing them and quickly falling asleep. Diego silently licked the dirt and grime off the fur on her head (her ears and nose were a tedious task, for they were the dirtiest and most sensitive) and then proceeded down to clean her neck. He continued on to her chest, shoulders, upper back, forelegs and stomach. The rest wasn't more than what he thought she could handle herself, it was her upper half that had bore the brunt of Galaxy's efforts. As his tongue tediously made its way through her fur, he thought back to earlier that morning. The herd's reactions had been varied.

* * *

Diego stood frozen, unable to comprehend what his senses were screaming at him. He had excellent vision in the dark, and his eyes did not see his daughter's form anywhere. His sensitive ears were picking up no sound of her familiar breathing pattern, and though his nose twitched this way and that, sometimes demanding that his head turn accordingly, her scent was as old as long as he had been gone. He, in a desperate attempt to reassure himself all was well, and that his body was probably having an allergic reaction to something, waved his paw around in the air, hoping to brush against his daughter's soft fur. But the results only made him feel stupid; Aritoka was gone. "No. No,"

He turned and sprinted out of the opening, his eyes searching desperately through the trees for her form, hoping she had simply walked a few yards away and wanted to give him a good scare. But he couldn't sense her here either. The shock and grief overwhelmed his mind, and although he fought for control, his emotions boiled over. His scream echoed to the mountains in the north, full of regret and longing. "NOOOOO!"

* * *

Galaxy's ears rang with a close by scream, and her head whipped around. Her focus on breakfast abandoned, she sprinted back to the home cave, worry mounting as horrible scenarios filled her mind. She nearly collided with a sprinting Diego, and quickly took in his frazzled countenance. "What's wrong?" she asked seriously, her voice mildly shaking. Diego swallowed thickly, clearly shaken.

"She's gone." Galaxy's eyes widened and she grabbed his shoulders, shaking him.

"What do you mean _gone_?" she demanded.

"Aritoka's not in the cave or _anywhere_ nearby." Diego stated quietly, his entire form trembling. Galaxy froze, her gaze locked with her mate's. Neither had any idea what to do; they were stuck in a parent's initial 'panic mode' that annoyingly came around whenever a child went missing. She suddenly released him and spun around, sprinting blindly through the woods, screaming her daughter's name, desperately hoping to come across her by chance. She was suddenly expertly pinned to the ground and turned over onto her back. "Galaxy, _stop_!" Diego's voice said forcefully. "I'm freaking out too, but this is _not_ how to get her back."

Galaxy felt her heart rate slowing and her senses returning. "We need to think rationally here." Galaxy nodded.

"Right...right." she said. Diego let her up, and the mother began to pace. "Okay...so the one thing she wants in the world, more than _anything_, is _freedom_. So she's probably gone somewhere that's a good few miles away from the cave,_ or _trying to find an exit from the valley." she thought out loud. Diego sighed and hung his head, turning away.

"It's all my fault." he muttered. Galaxy blinked at him.

"What? Why?" Diego sighed again.

"I chased her away. I kept her imprisoned for _ten months_ Galaxy. It's no wonder she ran away. She was forced to waste ten months of her life in a stupid cave. And now that she's out there, she doesn't even _know_ what to do! She's never had any experience, and it's all my fault!" She saw a rare tear dribble down his face. She nuzzled him lovingly underneath his neck.

"It's my fault too." She whispered. "It's alright." Diego looked down at her, his eyes moist and depressed. She gave him a small smile and licked his cheek, causing him to smile back. "Come on, let's go find that headstrong daughter of yours." She said, then began padding off to the rest of the herd.

"_My_ daughter? I think I need to remind you of a physically_ painful_ event that _I_ did not take part in!" followed after in a teasing tone.

* * *

Manny and his family were getting their breakfast, searching through the leafy trees for apples. Peaches was having a little bit of difficulty, not being a full adult yet, but Manny was proud at her small bit of succession. The possum twins swung through the tree branches, laughing and chasing each other, picking up snacks along the way. Suddenly, in between him and the tree trunk, Diego appeared. He was on his hind legs, leaning back against the trunk, face to face with the mammoth. Manny let out a cry and jumped back. "Diego, what is _wrong_ with you?" he demanded.

Then he took in the saber's anxious face as he lowered himself back to all fours. "Aritoka's gone." Manny's eyes widened.

"We looked all around the home cave. She wasn't there." Manny spun around to see Galaxy behind, wearing a face similar to Diego's.

"Well, she couldn't have gone far, could she?" the mammoth stuttered.

"Oh she can run like nobody's business. Just like her mother." Manny's head turned back to Diego.

"Are you blaming this on _me_?" came the indignant voice of Galaxy. Manny's head swerved back to her.

"No! I'm just...complaining-"

"_Complaining_ about what I had to offer for our daughter?"

"No! -"

"Might I remind you who has the shorter temper out of the two of us that she could inherit?"

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Manny shouted. His neck was starting to ache from his head's constant turning. "I'm surprised you two aren't freaking out."

"Oh, we're past that." Galaxy said, rolling her eyes. Ellie made her way over at this point, Peaches in tow.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"Aritoka's missing." Manny replied. His mate gasped.

"We've gotta' find her!" Peaches exclaimed. "What if something happens to her?"

"Happens to who?" Eddie asked, aapearing on Ellie's head with Crash.

"Aritoka ran away." Diego informed them. The twins gasped.

"Diego's little princess?" Crash asked, turning to his brother. "Gone?" Diego rolled his eyes, then looked around. "Wait, where's Sid?" As if on cue, the sloth burst into the area, sprinting up to Diego.

"Diego!" he panted. "I went to check on Aritoka, but she wasn't there! She's gone!"

"We know, Sid." Galaxy said.

"There's gotta' be some way to find her. I didn't see any of her prints at a first glance, but there might be some very faint ones."

* * *

Diego sighed as he laid next to Galaxy, holding her against his chest, her head tucked under his chin and her nose twitching softly against his neck. He stroked her neck tenderly, suddenly afraid she would disappear as well. He had lost too much already. The herd's thorough searching had only resulted in the weak scent trail he had found. He sighed deeply, situated himself comfortably with Galaxy in his embrace, and then reluctantly left the world in which he was in such torture and drifted into another, better world where his daughter was tucked safely into his embrace and out of the world's cold clutches.

* * *

**So how was it? Okay, it actually turned out longer than I thought it would, but that's good right? Please review thoroughly, I know there's a lot of material, but please try. See you next chappie! :)**


	5. Chapter 4: Haven

**Wat up readers? You know, I just realized that when I last left off on updating, I left you all kinda' early in the story. Sorry I haven;t updated in forever, but I just got back from a surprise five-day trip to Alabam to see my extended family. Adn I also got to see ICE AGE 4! AT LAST! But I will finish this story. In fact, I think I'll do one on Raz next! **

**She's my fave pirate! (And Shira is my fav Ex-Pirate XD) I was inspired by the new story 'Survival At Sea' by MBSAVfan1. But fear not, here is the next chapter of THIS story and I have good headway on the one after this! Things are getting quite interesting now, I will say. Thank You's go to:**

**Spellsong76: Thanks for reviewing on the frist chapter! Once this story is finished I hope you continue! ;D**

**AquilaTempestas: It's alright, everyone get's behind from tiem to time. Although I highly recommend reading chapters 3 and up! **

**Kitkat342: Yes, Sid is usually late. That's why he's so funny! XD Thanks, it's good to know all that hard work entertains you. You know you're a good writer when you make readers feel sorry for the characters. ;)**

**FemaleJester1212: Thanks! Hope this one's cool too!**

**Villains' Bad Girl: It's just becuase you're reading soemthing that gives you ideas. **

**Mwang: Poor Diego indeed. He shouldn't have turned into a Manny-Monster. Oh don't worry, LOTS will happen!**

**Zanderless: My newest reviewer! Thanks so much for reading, reviewing, and loving this story! Ah, I cannot reveal too muhc at this point in time, but I promise all will be revealed eventually. **

* * *

Rapunzel, Where's Your Tower?

Chapter 4: Haven

Aritoka awoke the next morning with a yawn, rolling over onto her back and stretching herself. Then she sat up slowly, her eyes still closed and ears laid flat against her head. She cracked her eyes open, and happened to look right into a shaft of sunlight. She squeezed her eyes shut before lowering her head and blinking rapidly in pain, letting out a whine of dissatisfaction. "Stupid sun...why do you have to be so bright all the time? Can't you be darker when I first wake up?" she complained. She finally peered out at the plains instead of staring up, and observed the grass carefully for any sign of movement of possible prey; her nose twitching left and right to inhale the different scents and distinguish their owners.

Catching the faintest scent of deer, she turned to where Sorvin lay a few feet away from her. She stood and experimentally made her way to him, stumbling a little. Once reaching her target, she gripped his shoulder and shook it lightly. He growled quite loudly and took a swipe at her, which she barely managed to dodge. After an indignant gasp, she frowned, narrowing her eyes, then grinned evilly. Taking a few steps back, she ran up and pounced on top of Sorvin, earning a cross between and grunt and a snore, and the two went tumbling down a small hill nearby their tree. Once they had stopped, Sorvin shoved the female off him with a growl, causing Aritoka to laugh.

"You like sleeping in later than _I_ do, don't ya?" she asked cheekily. Sorvin responded with another growl, which only caused Aritoka to smirk. She gestured back in the direction they had rolled from with her head. "Come on; I caught a faint scent of breakfast." Sorvin's eyes lit up and he jumped to his feet, stumbling and nearly falling back down in the process. Aritoka rolled her eyes. "_Men; all it takes is the mention of food to get them started. Lame._" she thought. Standing once more, carefully, Sorvin shook himself awake, then sat on his haunches and began rubbing his eyes.

"So; what are we after?"

"Deer."

"Great. I just _love_ a good sprint first the morning." came the grumble.

"You know where to find something else?" Sorvin thoroughly sniffed the air, before slumping in defeat. "I thought so." She turned and began a light jog, following her nose. She listened carefully to the padding footsteps of Sorvin as he followed her. "A little bolder today?" she called over her shoulder as they headed in the direction of the ever strengthening scent.

"I'm not a morning saber."

"Most of you _men_ aren't. That's why my mom gets breakfast four days a week and my father does the same for dinner." she replied.

"Are we almost to the deer?" came the terse reply. Aritoka allowed herself to chuckle for a moment as she continued lightly jogging in the direction of the herd. The scent suddenly became incredibly strong.

"Oh yeah!" she called back. After another few short minutes, Aritoka slowed expertly to a slink through the tall grass, eyes focused on a large herd of deer some meters away. Sorvin arrived beside her shortly, panting.

"How do you do that?" he whispered.

"Do what?"

"Go from a jog to a slink in thirty seconds flat?" Aritoka shrugged, extending her claws and kneading the dirt pensively as she came up with a strategy.

"Uhh...talent, I guess." she replied vaguely. "_Dude, I just sounded like dad!_"

"So, what's the plan?"

"Pretty simple."

"...What is it?" Aritoka smirked, enjoying the situation.

"I'll take up a position on our westward side; you sprint up and drive them in my direction."

"_Me_ sprint?"

"Only until I lock onto a target; then I'll take up the sprinting and you can just go fast enough to keep up with me and... keep any strays off my tail." Sorvin shrugged.

"Alright, we'll see how it works." he agreed.

Aritoka nodded, "Wait until three seconds after I get into position." She then stalked off to her selected spot, and waited for Sorvin.

* * *

Aritoka smirked in satisfaction as Sorvin dug into his half of the deer. "See?" she said. Sorvin grunted, continuing to stuff his face. Aritoka rolled her eyes and dug viciously inter her share as well. When the two had finished, Aritoka stood and shook herself, before turning her gaze to Sorvin. "So, what do you wanna' do? Continue travelling? Explore around a little bit?" Sorvin raised an eyebrow to her.

"What is there to explore?" Aritoka shrugged.

"I don't know. Just asking for your opinion."

"I say we keep moving. Wouldn't your dad be coming after you as soon as possible?" Aritoka blinked, then lowered her ears and looked away.

"Yeah, he would." she agreed quietly. Then put on a bright smile and jumped to her feet. "Let's get going then! Come on!" With that, she began sprinting towards the horizon, with Sorvin hot on her heels. As the wind she created whipped through her fur, Aritoka felt like she could conquer the world. Her father could never catch her, and Sorvin was so far proving to be a great travelling partner. If she could just get far enough, she would never have to go home again. She could stay free forever.

* * *

Diego walked swiftly, his nose to the ground, inhaling the scent in short quick bursts. It was his daughter's for sure, but it was about a day old, and so far covered a lot of ground. "_Yep. Fast like her mother_." he thought. It was steadily getting stronger, but not by much. Galaxy flanked him, nose to the ground as well.

"So, are we close?" Crash asked. Diego shook his head.

"Not in the slightest." he replied.

"She must have run a food, long way." Manny remarked, staring into the horizon. Diego decided not to bring up Aritoka's inheriting her mother's running skills again.

"We have to keep going." he said, then put his nose to the ground once more.

* * *

Aritoka and Sorvin traveled for three days at a nonstop sprint, only pausing for meals. At sundown on the third day, they took shelter in a large cave during a particularly nasty snow storm. They were both covered in snow within the first two minutes of being outside, and roughly shook it off at the entrance to their haven. Aritoka chose the left side of the cave. After turning in a few circles to warm the ground beneath her, she curled up in a ball, tucking her nose beneath her paws, and began to fall asleep. She was suddenly prodded by the paw of another. She opened one eye to see Sorvin standing over her. "Something wrong?" she asked. Sorvinglanced away sheepishly.

"Aritoka...we've known reach other for four days now. Are we...are we like...friends?" he asked. Aritoka gave him a small smile.

"Yeah. We're friends." she replied softly. Sorvin smiled back.

"Night." he said, then turned and made his way to the other side of the cave. Aritoka watched him walk, before burying her nose back beneath her paws, and this time truly fell asleep.

* * *

Aritoka was taken by surprise when, in the middle of the night, a large paw wrapped around her mouth. Startled, her eyes snapped open, and she instantly bit down on the paw as hard as she could. Her captor gave a yelp and jumped back. Aritoka sprung to her feet and whirled around to snarl in the other saber's face, before giving his nose a good slash. A roar of pain filled the cave and another saber lunged for Aritoka. She sidestepped her second assailant and delivered a paw-chop to the back of his neck. The saber gave a short spasm, before going limp, laying on their stomach.

Sorvin suddenly sailed over her head, pouncing onto the other saber. Aritoka noticed with worry that he had a nasty gash across his chest. The two wrestled, rolling around the cave floor until the uninvited attacker gained the upper hand, managing to straddle Sorvin onto his back. Aritoka at that point lunged, knocking the intruder off and pinning him to the floor, before delivering another paw chop to their throat. The assailant gave a choke, before falling unconscious. The two conscious sabers sat panting for a moment as Aritoka stepped off the second attacker. "Where did you...learn to do...do that?" Sorvin asked between pants.

"My father was skilled in the ways of Tae Kwon Saber, and insisted I learn as well." Aritoka panted with a smirk. Sorvin raised an eyebrow, clearly unfamiliar with the term. "It's a very...advanced style of fighting, often used for self-defense." Sorvin nodded slowly.

"Uh huh..."

"We should probably get out of here before someone _else_ comes to finish off the job." The two sabers immediately stood and sprinted out of the cave, only to be hit the temple and fall limp to the ground.

* * *

Aritoka's eyes opened groggily and everything around her seemed blurry. She shook her head and sat up with a groan. She put a paw to her throbbing temple, but pulled it away when it felt wet. She looked at her paw, startled to see a thick, crimson liquid. She looked around and spotted Sorvin laying a couple of feet away from her. She padded over to the male and laid down on her belly facing him, then proceeded to lick a wound she saw on his head that looked similar to her own. He soon gave a slight moan and moved his head, before opening his eyes to look at her.

"Aritoka? What happened? Where are we?" The female glanced around at their prison, nose twitching to pick up scents. They appeared to be in some large cave, alone.

"I'm not sure. It looks like a regular old cave." she replied. "I'm picking up a scent though. It's old, and of sabers, but only by a few hours." She looked back at Sorvin. "How's that wound in your temple?" she asked. Sorvin blinked, before lightly touching his head with a paw.

"Uh...it's throbbing, and it hurts a little." Aritoka nodded.

"How about your chest?" She noted that it was still seeping blood." Sorvin looked down at the gash, before grimacing.

"Definitely hurts a lot more than my head." he grunted. Aritoka nudged his leg out of the way with her nose and began licking the injury. Sorvin stiffened at first, but slowly relaxed.

* * *

Sorvin was in shock; sure Aritoka had said they were friends, but he hadn't expected her to care for him like this. From what he could feel, she had also cleaned his temple wound. His eyes roved over her figure, hoping for an injury of some sort. "_Bingo!_" he thought, spotting an area of blood seeping out of her temple as well. Slowly, awkwardly, he leaned his head forward and began gently licking the blood away. Aritoka paused for a moment in her licking, but besides that gave nary a flinch. Sorvin became used to the feeling of licking someone else's fur quickly, and found he quite enjoyed caring for Aritoka.

It felt right in some way, like this whole situation was the way he and Aritoka were supposed to treat each other when they got hurt. He liked being close to her, healing her like this. After he was sure the blood flow was staunched, he licked the top of her head a few times, hoping to assure her all was well if her nerves were frazzled. It wasn't long after this that Aritoka finished cleaning the gash on his chest. She shocked Sorvin again by gently tucking her head under his chin, nuzzling him. Sorvin's eyes widened, then he smiled and bent his head down, rubbing her muzzle softly with his. " Thanks."

"For what?"

"For cleaning my head."

"Oh, your welcome. But, I should be thanking you. You cleaned my head..._and_ my chest." Aritoka chuckled.

"No problem." she purred.

* * *

Aritoka froze, her nose twitching slightly to take in the scent better. She gently pulled away from Sorvin's warm embrace and hurriedly stood up, facing the direction the scent was coming from. "We're being approached." she whispered, her tail swishing tentatively from side to side. Sorvin clumsily clambered to his feet, crouching beside her.

"By whom?" Aritoka sniffed deeply.

"Two males and a female. No, two females and two males, another just joined them." The two sabers crept backwards and crouched in the shadows, waiting for their captors to appear. The four sabers slowly melted into sight, their green, glowing eyes scanning the cave for their captives and paws prowling silently through the empty area. Aritoka watched them with baited breath, her heart beating wildly with excitement at the sight and scent of sabers she had never seen before. Sorvin's constant presence was still new to her, so these four almost overwhelmed Aritoka. She lightly touched his foreleg closest to her; once sure she had his attention, she gestured with one leg for him to sneak to his right while she went to her left; an effective, basic, escape plan her father had taught her.

Sorvin nodded and the two turned away from each other, each stalking silently through the shadows, pressed up against either wall, eyes flickering between the four who had entered their prison and the entrance to the tunnel. Aritoka was nearly to the tunnel, but a cry drew her attention to the middle of the opposite wall. One of the females had caught Sorvin, and was pinning him to the wall with a paw around his throat. Her three comrades had turned their attention to the pair and were fast approaching them. Aritoka started over, worried for her friend. Sorvin spotted her and did his best to shake his head. "Save yourself, Aritoka!" he choked.

His outburst caused two of the other three sabers to turn and see Aritoka, and they lunged for her with a snarl. Aritoka propelled herself forwards, turning over onto her back and sliding underneath one of the males, since they had both come after her. She used her hind paw to kick him in the chest and gave his stomach and jab with her left front paw, efficiently knocking the wind out of him. She then rolled out from underneath him as he staggered and fell to the floor. She then focused on the other male, who snarled and made a swipe for her face. She leaned back and reared up, grabbing his ankle and twisting it, successfully flipping him over onto his back. She then then hammer-fisted his temple, giving him a nasty bruise and knocking him out.

One of the remaining females roared, and a team of six sabers entered the cave at high speed. Aritoka lay on her belly in a submissive manner, before rolling over onto her back unprovoked. She knew when she was outnumbered. Her ears told her that Sorvin had given up his struggling too. She glanced over to see the female choking him had pushed his chin up so that his neck craned back at a painful angle. Turning her attention back to the new arrivals, her twitching nose told her that the newcomers were three males and three females. One of the males stepped forward, glancing pointedly at Aritoka, "Is _this_ the problem?" his deep, gruff voice asked with disdain.

Aritoka scowled and growled at the tone he used, but wisely silenced after a mere moment. "Do not underestimate her." the female holding Sorvin snapped. "She fights in a way I have never seen before." she growled agitatedly, as though annoyed that she wasn't even remotely familiar with Aritoka's combat style. Aritoka gave a sly grin, but it turned into a grimace as one of the newer females wrapped her jaws around Aritoka's throat.

"Shall she be taken to the Master?" another one of the males asked.

"Yes. And so will her friend. I want two of you to circle _him_ with us while the remainder of you guard _her_ as she is dragged to the Master as Glovenia has her." Aritoka's blood boiled and she gave an indignant thrash.

"How dare you-" she received a harsh cuff to the head and cut herself off with a yelp.

"Hey! Don't touch her-" Sorvin protested, but finished with a choking sound.

"Clam it!" his captor hissed. "We will escort you to the Master, _now_!" Aritoka growled as she felt herself being dragged across the dusty ground by her throat. She glared at the other sabers who surrounded her calmly, walking forwards towards their 'master'. She winced as the female dragging her dug her teeth further into her throat and swung her head around to the front; Aritoka presumed it was so she could walk easier. The underside of her throat was now exposed toward the ceiling and her paws slid in an uncomfortable fashion across the ground. As if to make matters worse, the paws of the saber dragging her would lightly tap her ribcage as she walked, and it became quite annoying.

She even went as far as giving Aritoka a good kick in the ribs every couple of steps. This invoked the younger female's ire and she would snarl violently and flail for a moment every time her captor's paw came in contact with her. So of course she doubted that her first impression on the 'master' was very good. She soon heard a gruff, male voice command, "Release her!" Her head bounced painfully against the ground as she was released, causing her to grunt loudly. She heard a low, rumbling sound, and rolled over onto her stomach, before looking up at the face of the 'master'. She was met with cold, hard, steel-gray eyes, set deeply into a golden yellow face.

The faint brown lips curled into a wicked smile around twin long, sturdy, sharp sabers. Aritoka realized that the rumbling noise was the hulking figure before her _purring_. He lay on his belly on a slab of rock, his head raised so that he could rove his eyes over her, surrounded by females. They sat one other rock slabs, two in particular were snuggled up against the 'master's' humongous, muscled, well toned body. He lowered his head onto his paws, eyeing her fondly, his head tilted in curiosity. "And what is _your_ name, my pretty?" he asked in a smooth, seducing voice. Aritoka wrinkled her nose and gave a low growl of disgust.

"Why does it _matter_?" she spat back. "Let me and my friend go!" The Master gave a roaring laugh, throwing his head back and letting the sound resound in the cave. He looked back at Aritoka with a glint in his eye that made the younger female twitch her tail agitatedly.

"Oh, I _do_ feel an attraction to _you_, my pretty." he purred. Aritoka's breath hitched in her throat in surprise. The Master gave each female an affectionate nuzzle, before standing up and padding over to Aritoka. He barely touched her cheek with a gentle paw, but she took great offense to such proximity and slapped his paw away, making a snap for his face. But she was grabbed from behind and jerked backwards so that she was forced onto her back by another set of teeth digging into her throat. "Oh, do be gentle with her. She's far too good a prize to be blemished any further."

Aritoka's throat was released, and she quickly sat up; this was the first time she had ever been truly uncomfortable in the presence of another creature while sprawled on her back. It made her feel unprotected in a way around the Master to show off her underside. She crouched low and gave him a wary glare as he approached her once more. "I just _have_ to ask," he continued. "where did such a beautiful thing like you get such an atrocious scar?" Aritoka visibly stiffened at the mention of her one physical imperfection. Not to mention how he called her a _thing_.

She raised her chin haughtily, attempting to look down her nose at him. "None of your concern." she replied in a snooty tone. "You have no right to keep us here, let us go!" The Master gave another deep, bellowing laugh. He stared at her with a fond face, but the look of intent in his eyes made Aritoka want to shiver.

"Yes...you will make a wonderful addition to my collection." he said quietly. "Sophia?" he called. A light tan female with brown paws, lime green eyes, and a white underside stepped down from one of the stones surrounding the Master's 'throne'. She came and sat beside the male, giving Aritoka a soft smile coupled with eyes that Aritoka could only describe as blissfully twisted. The two shared a quick nuzzle before turning their attention back to Aritoka. "Sophia, why don't you give Aritoka the orientation? She and I can have our first session tonight."

Sophia smiled at Aritoka with a look the younger female could not describe. "I would love to. I'm sure she will enjoy herself when you are ready." She took a step towards Aritoka and nudged her towards a small hole in the wall off to her left. "Come along sweetheart," she said, in a soft, quiet, soothing voice. "it's time for your orientation on 'Haven'.

* * *

**Whew! About 11 pages! I think I did a pretty good job! What do you all think? For anyone who might want to know; Tae Kwon Saber is my own twist on a real-life style of martial arts called Tae Kwon Do, which I am a student in and am one belt away from getting my black belt. Plus I might have added a few techniques I practise in kickboxing. I will definitely put more Tae Kwon Saber techniques in as the story goes on! **

**Plz review!**


	6. Chapter 5: Escape from the Adversary

**Hey everyone! I'm finally back! Either I took a long time, or a TON of people updated while I was gone. Maybe a little of both...Anyway, here's a new chapter for you all! I hope it's long enough to you readers, it certainly looks lengthy to me. , only three reviews the last chapter? That's sad! :'( Does no one like this anymore? Anyway, just a little encouragement; if anyone hasn't read emmydisney's (sorry if I spelled that wrong) story, '**_**Totally Ice Age!**_**' I highly suggest doing so! It's pretty awesome, and there's even a sequel they've started! Thank You's go to:**

**FemaleJester1212: Thanks for stating how epic it is! Yeah, the sun or any bright light is really annoying early in the morning.**

**kitkat342: You will find out what it is here! Nope, he doesn't. And he'd be pretty fuming mad if he knew what happened in this chapter... Thanks, I've been working on action. :)**

**mwang: Yep, although I need to work on my poomse and one-steps a little bit. Thanks for loving it! Here's the next chappie!**

**So all who read this chapter, please enjoy it and review!**

* * *

Rapunzel, Where's Your Tower?

Chapter 5: Escape from the Adversary

Aritoka paused for a moment, then turned back to the Master. "Wait! What about my friend?" she demanded. The male turned and observed Sorvin for a moment.

"Shorval will give him the warrior's orientation and begin his training." Another male, covered in dark brown fur with green eyes and a never-ending scowl, gave a nod of acknowledgment. Sophia nudged her again, and she took one last look at Sorvin. He nodded.

"Go. I'll be fine." he said firmly, giving her a firm look. Aritoka nodded sadly and turned to follow Sophia. The older female led her into the tunnel, and soon the two were sealed off, alone in a small chamber. Aritoka sat facing the other female, wondering when she would be able to escape.

"_He called me a thing._" she thought. "_Dad said I was beautiful, but he called me his special little girl too._ _He told me that my life long partner would call me his special woman._ "

"Alrighty then." Sophia began. "This place, called 'Haven' is now your new home! You will have regularly scheduled sessions with the Master, three meals a day, and the rest is free time to yourself. Some days you will not have any sessions, otherwise known as 'holidays'."

"Um, what are 'sessions'?" Aritoka asked. Sophia chuckled.

"Dear, you're part of the Haven Harem now, I should think it's quite obvious." Aritoka's eyes widened in horror. Her mother had spoken to her about harems before. One male leader would have as many females as he pleased as his companions for pleasure purposes only. She shook her head violently, wondering why she hadn't realized it before.

"No!" she exclaimed in disgust. "I'm not part of any harem! It's disgusting!" Sophia rolled her eyes.

"It's always hard at first." she said. "You've probably lost everything you have, or are terribly lost. But Haven is your new home, and you're wanted here. Just forget all your old life; it doesn't matter anymore. You have a new place where you belong."

"No!" Aritoka resisted, her stubborn nature in full blaze. "This is wrong! I have a family that loves me and a home I know! I even have a new friend! I don't need a stupid harem!" she insisted. "Let me and Sorvin go!" Sophia's body stiffened visibly. Aritoka fell silent, confused and slightly intimidated by this crazy saberess.

"Sorvin...Sorvin is alive?" she asked. Aritoka raised an eyebrow.

"I know _a _Sorvin." she replied cautiously.

"There's only one Sorvin in this world." Sophia insisted. "He's my...adopted son." Aritoka twitched, shocked. "My mate, Alduro, and I, wanted a child. I had one cub, but it wasn't healthy and died when it was a few days old. That same day, he stormed off in anger and despair, and I stayed home to bury the child and mourn. But then, a few hours later, he came back carrying a tiny cub in his jaws, and laid it before me.

"He said he had found it abandoned and decided to bring it home. I was so happy," Sophia smiled for a moment. "and he convinced me we should name the little boy 'Sorvin'. So we did. But then...one day, about ten moths later...Alduro and Sorvin left. I didn't have any idea what had happened, I couldn't find their scents anywhere. I searched forever, but eventually ended up here, in Haven."

She stopped and glanced away, as if reliving all the painful days she had searched for her one little baby. Aritoka suddenly understood why she had taken up a position at the Haven Harem. But she still knew it was a mistake on the poor saberess's part. But what confused her more was that her mate was Alduro. Could it be the same Alduro who had scarred her? She studied Sophia closely; if she had been Alduro's mate, Aritoka decided it must have been when he wasn't a weird psycho who wanted her dead. Sophia looked back up at Aritoka. "If my little Sorvin is alive...I don't want him to live here and know what his mother did.

"I'll help the two of you get out, before your first session." Aritoka smiled.

"Thank you." she said. A frown soon found its way onto her face. "Sorvin said he never knew his mother though." Sophia shook her head.

"I'm sure it's him. There's only one saber in the world named Sorvin." she restated. Aritoka shrugged.

"Alright then, what's the plan?"

* * *

Sorvin followed the large brown saber, Shorval, to a small cavern that was only a short tunnel away from the main chamber. Once there, Sorvin was pounced upon, shoved into the dirt, turned over onto his back, and a large pair of jaws wrapped tightly around his throat. He groaned and struggled for a moment, but the jaws tightened around him. He finally stopped resisting after a short while, at which time Shorval released his throat but kept him pinned to the floor. He bent his lips down to Sorvin's ear, "The only _orientation_ you _need_ is that our goal here is too numb your natural urge of resistance and accept us as your superiors whom you will obey under any circumstance _is_ that clear?" Sorvin gave him a hard glare, before nodding mutely. "Good." Shorval huffed.

He stepped off Sorvin and grabbed his foreleg, painfully pulling him up into a sitting position. "Now," he said tersely. "You will exit this tunnel and report to Sopmeck. He will begin your training and assign you to a legion of the females to protect. _Understand_?" Sorvin parted his lips into a snarl and gave a low growl, but all the same stood and proceeded back up the tunnel to the main chamber. He glanced around, wondering who Sopmeck was.

A large saber with orange fur and pale brown eyes approached him and placed a large paw on his head, shoving him into a crouch. Sorvin winced but complied, afraid of what might happen should he resist. He doubted that these sabers were incapable of subduing every warrior under their control. He felt Sopmeck's jaws, for that was who this saber had to be, wrap around his throat and left his upper half into the air, then began walking, almost carrying Sorvin like a cub. Sorvin closed his eyes and tried to relax, hoping something would inspire an escape plan within him. He suddenly felt dreadfully cold, and attempted to curl himself into a ball. And found that he could.

His eyes remaining closed, he shivered against the terrible cold, and soon heard a small, desperate mewling sound. "_A cub?_" he thought. He was suddenly jerked out of the cold, and the mewling ceased as he was dumped onto the stone ground rather painfully. He opened his eyes to see Sopmeck sitting in front of him silently, like a stoic boulder. Sorvin slowly rose to a sitting position, glancing around at the empty cave. What exactly would he do to train Sorvin?

"I am ready." spoke a low pitched, ominously soft voice. Sorvin whipped his head back to Sopmeck, and peered at the saber inquisitively. He slowly paced around the large saber, studying him intensely. Sopmeck had a very bulky figure, was a very dark shade of orange all over, and seemed to radiate power. He reminded Sorvin of someone, someone he was so anxious to see again that he hastened around to glimpse his opponent's face. He was met with cold, calculating, pale brown eyes that dashed his hopes. But the calculating eyes intrigued him; was he noting down Sorvin's tactics? Scoring him on their standards, perhaps?

Sorvin went into a crouch, continuing to stalk around Sopmeck's large figure three more times, observing him for any signs of intention. He stopped behind the much larger saber's back, and gave a low growl. He noted how Sopmeck seemed to sigh, before tensing. He continued his circular stalk, noting the surprise in Sopmeck's eyes as he reappeared at the saber's right side. He circled him another two times, and then paused behind his back. He released another growl, and Sopmeck tensed even more. He began stalking once more, circled him once, and then gave a loud roar.

As he suspected, Sopmeck turned around and lunged. Sorvin quickly stepped to the side and Sopmeck landed next to him. He pounced upon the larger saber and straddled him, pressing his face into the dirt. Sopmeck lay still for a while, before rolling over and pinning Sorvin beneath his shoulder. Thinking he was still being trained, Sorvin kicked the middle of his back and jabbed his shoulder, like he had seen Aritoka do. Sopmeck rolled off him with a roar of pain, and Sorvin straddled him once more, then took another page from Aritoka's book and did his best paw-strike to the back of his exposed neck. However, the dense muscle his opponent possessed nearly caused his paw to cramp.

He winced and hissed in pain, which gave Sopmeck a chance to roll over and pin Sorvin once more, only this time by standing up and straddling him. He growled lowly in Sorvin's face, before flipping him over onto his stomach and once again gripping his throat with his jaws. Sorvin felt as though he was once again being carried like a cub as Sopmeck took out of the cavern. He closed his eyes again and relaxed, curious about his previous experience. This time, he was warm, surrounded by something very soft. He wiggled a little more into the fur, disturbed by something, although he couldn't tell what it was. He was once again pulled from the experience by being dropped to the hard rocky floor a second time.

Sorvin looked up to see a gaping hole in the wall, then turned back to Sopmeck. "You are assigned to legion fifteen." he said dryly, before turning and leaving. Sorvin sat up and watched him leave, before turning and gazing into the black tunnel. After looking around cautiously, he carefully crept into the tunnel, his eyes flicking around and nose twitching at the strong female scent. He soon came upon a cavern lit by a hole that allowed the dying light of the sunset to stream inside. He froze upon seeing a horde of female sabers sleeping all over the cavern. His blood was chilled by what he saw in the very center of the cavern.

The Master from the main chamber was standing beside one of the females, nuzzling her awake gently and smiling at her. The female, whose orange fur was a light creamy shade, opened her hazel eyes and smiled at him, before nuzzling him back and licking his muzzle. "Mariah, I would like to have a small session with you before Aritoka. I feel as though I have been neglecting you a great deal." he said. Sorvin's mind shut down and he backed away quickly, paying no heed to the female's reply. Horror rose up in his chest as he returned to the post spot where Sopmeck had left him. He began to shake as he realized what the Master had in mind for Aritoka.

He just couldn't let that happen to her; they had to get out of here. His body stiffened as he heard the Master exiting the tunnel with Mariah. He put on a bored expression and didn't make eye contact with either saber, and was glad that they continued in the direction away from him. Once he was sure he was alone, he hastened back inside to where the legion resided. "_Pssssssssst_!" he said loudly. A handful of the females woke up and stared at him in curiosity. "I need your help!" he whispered.

One of the awakened females stepped forward. "And what would you need our help with?" she asked, her eyes roving over him. Sorvin thought for a moment.

"The Master wishes for me to guard Aritoka personally until he's ready...but I'm, new here and I don't know which legion she's in." he lied.

"Is she new as well?"

"Yes."

"All the new females are put into legion one. They move on to higher legions as they complete sessions." she replied. Sorvin internally shuddered in disgust.

"Thank you." he replied. He gave a nod, and turned to exit the cavern. Once returned to his post, he glanced around, and then set off for legion one. He passed by another guard who gruffly demanded where he was headed and why. "The Master sent me to retrieve the new girl, Aritoka, and guard her personally until he is ready for her. Could you direct me to legion one?" he asked, heart thumping wildly in his chest. The other male nodded.

"Just continue down this tunnel until you come to an entrance with two guards at the front. The Master likes to keep all the newest ones under extra guards since they're most likely to attempt escape." Sorvin nodded and continued on. He soon came to a large tunnel entrance and proceeded towards the two guards. But to his shock, Aritoka and another female exited the tunnel, exchanging nods with the guards. After confirming that they were a safe distance away, he lightly trotted after them, quickly catching up.

"Aritoka!" he hissed from a few yards behind. The two turned to look at them, their faces brightening. Aritoka motioned to him with her paw, and he loped up to the two. "Glad I found you." he said, then turned to the other female, who's face had fallen and was staring at the ground. "Who are you?" he asked suspiciously.

"She's Sophia, the one who was supposed to give me my orientation." Aritoka said quickly, catching Sorvin's attention. "She's helping us get out of here." Sorvin turned back to Sophia.

"Why?" he questioned. The female still didn't look directly at him.

"She's uh...got some personal guilt issues." Aritoka replied. "Can you lead us to the exit?" she addressed the other female. Sophia nodded and continued on, Aritoka and Sorvin following her. After walking through many twisting and turning tunnels, the three sabers finally reached the exit to the outside. Sorvin took a few steps out into the soft, green grass and breathed deeply. He look back at the tunnel, then his eyes wandered up the stone wall it was carved into. He was awed by the revelation that he had been walking within a huge mountain.

Aritoka turned to Sophia. "Sophia, you can come with us." she offered. Sophia shook her head sadly.

"No. Someone has to cover for you." she said.

"Sophia...we don't _need_ cover. Not as long as we escape quick enough." Aritoka said, laying a paw on the older saberess's shoulder. "You can start a new life. A better one." Sorvin watched the spectacle with keen interest. Sophia smiled at Aritoka, then shifted her eyes so that the smile was directed at Sorvin.

"Thank you for the invitation." she said quietly, then slowly drew in a breath. "But I belong here now. You two...take care of each other." she said, then turned and vanished into the dark tunnel. Aritoka stared after her for a while, before turning with a sigh and catching up to Sorvin.

* * *

**So how was it? Just a heads up; you will probably see a couple one-shots from me in the future. I will say this: I have been inspired by music...**


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